Velocifero

Description

Four albums in, and it’s quite clear that Liverpool’s Ladytron are not susceptible to the dancefloor’s flightier urges. Like its predecessors, Velocifero is electro-pop to the core, a sparking circuit of cold emotions and enveloping synths that despite its remove –- or perhaps because of it –- feels the perfect vehicle for some genuinely affecting pop songs. Boasting additional production work from Nine Inch Nails’ Alessandro Cortini and Vicarious Bliss of notorious Parisian imprint Ed Banger, there is a certain robust quality of sound here: "Black Cat", sung by Mira Aroyo in her native Bulgarian, commences with booming drums and big black smears of synthesiser. But there are signs of a certain playfulness, too. "Ghosts" rides a lolloping glam beat that positions it in the area of Goldfrapp’s Black Cherry, Helena Marnie’s cool, mysterious vocal recalling Stereolab’s Laetitia Sadler in its veiled promise: "There's a ghost in me/who wants to say I'm sorry/Doesn't mean I'm sorry". The Aroyo-sung "Kletva", meanwhile, is a cover of the theme from an old Bulgarian children’s TV program, performed with an uncharacteristic jaunt that, while relatively alien to Ladytron, actually works rather nicely.–-Louis Pattison